It is known to use disposable plastic containers in the food preparation and restaurant industry to package prepared or take-out foods. The typical food container of the prior art consists of a clear or opaque color base and a clear or opaque lid. The clear lid of the prior art plastic food container allows visible inspection of the container contents. The lid and base of the prior art plastic food container may be separate articles or may be attached to each other via a hinge.
The lid and base of the prior art plastic container have complementary interlocking rim structures that seal the container. This interlocking rim arrangement is beneficial in helping keep cooked foods warm and in preventing spillage of food contents from the container. Main course take-out food items typically include a side dish, sauce or condiment. For example, when waffles or pancakes are ordered, the food establishment will include butter and syrup with the order. Likewise, when chicken strips are ordered, the food establishment will typically include a dipping sauce of the customer's choice with the order. In some cases, the main course item is intended to be sold and eaten with a side dish. For example, a chicken breast entree may include a side order of french fries, mashed potatoes, cole slaw or some type of salad.
When these types of foods are purchased for take-out, it is intended that the customer will eat the purchased food at some length of time after purchase. Hence, if a sauce or condiment is added to the main course item prior to or at the time of delivery of the food, the main course food item may degrade in texture and appeal by the time the customer is ready to eat the purchased item. The likewise can happen to both the main course item and side dish if they are placed in the same container and are caused to come in contact with each other or mix with each other.
To avoid the food degradation issue, the typical prior art take-out food establishment will provide any accompanying sauce, condiment or side dish in a separately sealed container that comprises a base component (a cup, bowl or tray) and a lid. Alternatively, in the case of a sauce or condiment, the sauce or condiment may be provided in the form of a pouch or packet. There are drawbacks associated with utilizing these separately sealed containers. Purchasing and providing these additional separately sealed containers increases the overhead cost of the food establishment. This cost is typically borne by the customer in the form of added food prices. In addition, the food establishment must dedicate storage space for the separate containers (base components and lids), pouches and packets. If the food handed to the customer is aggregated in a bag, the employee filling the order must make sure each separately sealed container is included in the bag that is given to the customer. As any person who has ever patronized a fast-food restaurant knows, it is not uncommon for take-out customers to be shorted one or more of their accessory food items.
In the case where the take-out food items are not given to the customer aggregated in a bag, the customer buying the main course item must now carry at least one additional container when taking away the purchased food item. Not only is this cumbersome for the customer, from an environmental standpoint, serving a main course food item with a separately sealed accessory food item doubles the amount of throw-away waste articles aggregating in landfills. Hence, using separately sealed containers and pouches to provide accessory food items for take-out purposes, is environmentally unfriendly.
The prior art attempts to deal with the drawbacks attendant to using separately sealed containers and pouches for accessory food items through the use of compartmentalized food containers. With these containers, the base component usually has one main compartment and one to two additional compartments for side dishes. One problem with the prior art compartmentalized container is that it is always compartmentalized and cannot be used for over-sized main dishes that do not need accessory food items. More problematic is the fact that the compartments are not leak-resistant, so even minor jostling of the container results in the contents of the compartments sloshing together.
There is thus a need in the art for an improved plastic food container that provides containment for take-out main course dishes, reduces the need to for secondary sealed containers for accessory food items and eliminates the lack of flexibility and lack of leak-resistance associated with known compartmentalized food containers.